Republican Gov. Scott Walker, touting nearly $2 billion in tax cuts over the past three years and the addition of more than 100,000 jobs, officially launched his re-election campaign Tuesday with a series of rallies across Wisconsin.

Walker, wearing a red University of Wisconsin Badgers shirt at the first event outside of Madison, told about 200 supporters he deserves a second term because the state is better off now than when he took over nearly four years ago. He made no mention of a much-speculated possible run for president in two years' time.

"Wisconsin is back," Walker said on the plant floor at Dane Manufacturing. "Wisconsin is on the right track again."

Walker faces Democrat Mary Burke, a former Trek Bicycle Corp. executive and state commerce secretary, in the Nov. 4 election. The race is one of the most closely watched in the country, as Walker seeks to get elected for a third time in four years. In 2012 he became the first governor in U.S. history to defeat a recall.

The election is also getting attention given Walker's expected interest in running for president in 2016. Walker has not said whether he plans to run, saying he's focused on this re-election. But the publication of his book last fall describing his fight against unions and the recall, along with aggressively tapping national donors and keeping a high profile at Republican events, has stoked talk of a presidential bid.

He has also refused to commit to serving a full four-year term if re-elected.

Walker is making his case for a second term pointing to the nearly $2 billion in tax cuts he's signed into law that have passed the Republican-controlled Legislature. The state has also added more than 100,000 private sector jobs since he took office.

Walker promised in 2010 to add 250,000 private sector jobs by the end of this year - a pledge he is not likely to fulfill.

Walker also expanded the state's private school voucher program statewide, signed into law a concealed carry law, and a requirement that voters show photo identification at the polls, but that is on hold pending court challenges.

Walker also rejected federal Medicaid expansion, instead taking a path that resulted in about 75,000 people losing state BadgerCare coverage while a roughly similar number of childless adults were brought into the program. For the first time, everyone in poverty has access to Medicaid coverage.

Walker also got a two-year tuition freeze instituted for all UW campuses last year and just last week proposed extending that for another two years.

Walker said in his campaign speech that his goal was to reduce the dependency on government and increase the dependency on hard work and pride.

"We're definitely not done yet," Walker said to sign-waving backers.

He was joined by his wife, Tonette, sons Matt and Alex and Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and her family. They planned similar rallies in La Crosse, Chippewa Falls, Schofield, Green Bay and State Fair Park outside of Milwaukee.

Burke argues Walker has failed the state, pointing to the fact that Wisconsin is 35th in private-sector job growth.

"Walker's game plan has failed," Burke said in a statement. "Giving tax breaks to out-of-state corporations and those at the top is not how you create jobs. And it's not how you grow the middle class."

Burke has said she does not support voucher school statewide, she backs legalizing same-sex marriage and increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.

Burke also said she supports collective bargaining rights, but she has not pledged to repeal the law Walker championed in 2011 that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. Walker's push for that law shortly after he took office led to massive protests and the recall, which Walker won in June 2012.

Walker’s supporters, such as Colleen Schmidt, said they are not concerned that Walker failed to achieve a promised 250,000 new jobs -- a criticism Burke and fellow Democrats have criticized.

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“Obviously he didn’t get to all the jobs that he wanted to, but it was a tough economy,” Schmidt said. “And I think everything is going in the right direction.”

The most recent Marquette University law school poll released in March showed Walker with a seven-point lead over Burke. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.